Dog rescued from Leaside fire

A dog was rescued from a burning industrial building in Leaside on Sunday evening.

Toronto Fire crews were called to a roof fire at an industrial building on Canvarco Road near Laird Drive at 9 p.m.

A local resident called Toronto Fire when he witnessed smoke coming from the building’s roof, district chief Stephen Powell said. The caller also said someone was trapped in the building.

First to enter the building were firefighters Aziz Dousheh and Darrick Burke. The two firefighters heard someone coughing in the back room and immediately ran to rescue, they said.

“When I entered I heard a dog coughing in the back room. It seem like it was protecting the building,” Aziz Dousheh said. “I’m not a pet person, never had a pet, so I didn’t know how to react. I just followed my instinct, I kneeled, I opened my arms and the dog just ran towards me.”

The dog is expected to fully recover, firefighters said.

Eye witnesses said the flames rose about eight feet in the air and smoke could be seen from the Longo’s parking lot on Laird.

It took firefighters about 45 minutes to get the fire under control. The cause of the fire has not been determined yet, but Toronto Fire is conducting an investigation, Powell said.